My Personal Net Worth Report For Q1 2018
Wow, the market really changed course the first three months of 2018. It was as if any money I invested just disappeared. My regular income and investment accounts sure battled it out in this regard.
Still, in the long run, investing on the down periods when everyone is scared is often the way to go. I choose to live below my means so that in the future my means won't require my active effort.
The few times I tell people around me, at work and such, how much I save and side hustle, they say they could never do that.
Exactly! If you want to get away from the crowd, you have to do stuff the crowd isn't doing.
Somone can have a large income but if they aren't saving and investing then it really doesn't matter. Oh, they can have the nice clothes and the fancy car, but their life can change in an instant if they lose their income. They are just doing what the crowd is - spending everything they earn (and often even more so).
Your net worth is the sum of all your assets. Poor people buy things that decrease in value, while those with a wealthy mindset buy investments that usually increase in value.
It is important to note that your net worth is how rich you are, not how wealthy. Wealth is different. It is freedom.
You can be rich, but if you have to go out and work each day then you are not wealthy.
Robert Kiyosaki of "Rich Dad Poor Dad" fame said this of wealth.
"Wealth is a number of days forward that you can survive without working. Wealth is measured in time, not dollars."
So if you invest your money into things that pay for all of your daily living expenses then you are wealthy and free. That is my goal.
Now I am just talking about wealth in the monetary sense, but do know that there are plenty of different areas to be wealthy in - like happiness.
You can be wealthy financially, but it doesn't automatically make you happy.
Ok, enough preaching, on to the 1st quarter results. I ended 2017 with a net worth of $245,379.
CASH
Starting $15,745 Ending $20,204 [+4,458]
I usually like to hold about $10,000 in cash. This includes both my day-to-day checking funds as well as my emergency fund.
I have almost double that amount.
I am thinking about the future. I would like to be able to buy up a few investment properties during the next down turn. To do so, it is much easier if I have the cash on hand to entice an even lower price from the sellers.
INVESTMENTS
Starting $95,516 Ending $102,403 [+6,887]
This is going to need an explanation.
First, this is from the last quarter of 2017. The reason I am showing you this is because my Scottrade account was taken over by TD Ameritrade. Personal Capital (where I track my net worth) removes all the historical data when an account is unlinked (which then does not show on the graph).
So my investment accounts ended the year with the graph above. An amount that totaled $95,516 at the end of the year.
And it ended the quarter at $102,403. It wasn't for a lack of trying though!
Thankfully, I do most of my stock market investing through Robinhood. There are ZERO fees AND they are adding easy cryptocurrency trading nationwide!
If Robinhood interests you, sign up using this link to get a free share of stock (I will too). Sign up is free and you don't even need to deposit anything to get your free share!
MORTGAGE
Starting $59,969 Ending $58,669 [+1,299]
This is my only debt as I own my cars and pay off my credit cards in full each month.
I used to pay a little extra, but I ended that as I have been wanting to stack up cash. With the interest rates rising, my 3.375% mortgage is looking better and better.
ASSETS
Starting $194,672 Ending $189,450 [-5,222]
This amount includes three cars and a house. And they decreased in value by over $5,000!
The local housing market cooled off a bit and I depreciated my used cars for the new year. It was mostly the house though.
I have other assets not listed here but I choose to not use them to calculate my total net worth.
All together this comes out to a net worth of $252,366!
(Remember that the graph isn't accurate as my Scottrade account history was removed. I ended 2017 with a net worth of $245,379.)
A TOTAL QUARTERLY INCREASE OF $6,987!
Even with a down market and my home and car value decreasing I still managed to stack away over $2,000 each month.
Oh, and the wife and kids flew last-minute back home to the UK as my wife's grandmother passed away. That cost a good amount as well.
For reference, here are the previous quarter net worth increase results:
Q4 2017: $17,822
Q3 2017: $19,096
Q2 2017: $18,513
Q1 2017: $16,671
Now, these totals do not include any other assets besides what is shown above. No cryptocurrency, no precious metals, not my eBay inventory, nothing else. I choose not to track everything in my net worth, just the common stuff.
This year, I will earn $68,000 from my job. That is about $5,667 per month before taxes. My wife is a stay at home mom to our two kids.
I say this to explain that I am not working for Google or something making $300,000 per year. Just a normal guy supporting a family but with a frugal mindset and the goal to become financially free.
If I can do it, so can you! If you want it bad enough, that is.
I track my net worth using Personal Capital. It is free and works automatically. By tracking your net worth you know where you are, where you were, and where you are heading. The best thing I ever did was start tracking my money.
If you want to start, sign up for Personal Capital using this link and we will both get $20.